'Wii Party U' is great for a crowd, offering silly short mini-games or longer board games filled with lots of varied challenges.

Written by

Jinny Gudmundsen
Special for USA TODAY

One of the prime reasons to own Nintendo's Wii U is that it makes playing games with others a breeze. "Wii Party U" is the newest game to help families get their party started.

From the opening screen, you have four main ways to explore games: TV Party, House Party, GamePad Party and Minigames.

You might also talk with Party Phil - your virtual party host - who will ask you a few questions and then suggest games. In addition, Nintendo keeps track of how you and others rate the 80 minigames in the collection and lets you choose to explore the most popular. ...